The origin of the name of the city of Craiova (for centuries the 2nd city of Wallachia & capital of semi-autonomous region of Oltenia) remains a mistery...
Some claim is from "kral" (like Serbian city Kraljevo) & some others link it with "krajna" (border area).
Some claim is from "kral" (like Serbian city Kraljevo) & some others link it with "krajna" (border area).
There is no other corroborating historical document, the only thing that we know is that the name came about as residence of the Craiovești boyar family who got a deed for in 1475. The family seems to have moved sometime in 1450s from the town of Strehaia.
Now within the city there are the ruins of the Dacian town of Pelendava, continued into Roman Dacia under the same name & included in Tabula Peuterigiana. The settlement continued after Aurelian withdrawal being mentioned under the name Ponsiona in a 6th century inscription.
Interestingly enough the same name Ponsiona (=Bridge over Iona which is likely the Jiu/Zhil river) surfaces in map from cca 1396 made in Italy & is put in about the same location... No ruins of a stone bridge known, but it could have been just a wooden one... another puzzle.
* Tabula Peutingeriana
• • •
Missing some Tweet in this thread? You can try to
force a refresh
